Rationale:
It is important that students read fluently. Reading fluently
means to recognize words quickly, automatically, and with
expression.
In this lesson,
students will focus on using expression while they read. In
order to use expression while students read, they must focus on
clue words and punctuation that tells the mood of the story.
Students will practice using expression through repeated
readings. Through this, students will familiarize themselves
with the story, in turn, building their fluency level.

Procedure:
1. Say: Let's think back to when we were learning decoding
skills to help us read. What if I was reading a sentence in a
story and could not figure out the word? What should I do first
to help me figure out the word? (Allow students to think and
respond) I would crosscheck, which means I would read the rest
of the sentence for help and see what might make sense in the
place where I was having trouble. For example, say I came across
a sentence: (write the following sentence on the white board):
Max looks for his ball under his bed. Now I'm going to read it
aloud and model how I would crosscheck. "Max looks for his ball
uuuddeerr, umm, ooddeerr, I'm struggling with this word, let me
read the rest of the sentence for help, his bed. Oh I know that
word is under, Max looks for his ball under his bed."

2. Say: Awesome job crosschecking! Today we are going to focus
on using expression while we read.
This is similar to how we talk. How do you express yourself
when you talk? (Allow time for students to answer) Can you
tell if someone is happy, sad, or mad by the way they talk?
(Allow time for students to answer). Let's think about
punctuation. What does a question mark or exclamation mark
tell us to do with our voice? (Allow time to answer).
Exclamation marks tell us to yell or raise our voice and
question marks tell us to emphasis words and make our voice go
up. Punctuations act as clues while we read to know how we are
supposed to express ourselves. Also, words act as clues to
tell us what kind of voice we should use to read a sentence.

3. Say: Now let's
practice recognizing people's feelings when they talk. If I read
this sentence (have written on sentence strip and post on white
board): "My puppy ran away." I think I should say this sentence
with a sad voice because if my puppy ran away, I would be sad.
(Say sentence with a sad voice.) What if I read this sentence
(have written on sentence strip and post on white board): "The
zoo was fun!" Would I say this with a sad voice, a happy voice,
or a mad voice? (Allow time for students to answer). I think it
would be happy because there is an exclamation mark which shows
excitement.

4. Say

: Not only is expression important while reading
but so is reading at the right speed. For example, what if I
read like this: "I took my dog to the park." (Read the sentence
really fast) What is wrong with reading in that way? That's
right! I read the sentence too fast. What if I read it like
this?: "I took my dog to the park." (Read the sentence slowly.)
What is wrong with reading in that way? That's right! I read the
sentence way too slow. How about this?: "I took my do to the
park." (Read at the right speed). Does that sound better than
the other ways I read? Reading at the right speed is important
so that you and listeners can understand the story better. Let's
practice reading some sentences together at the right speed.
(Have the following sentences on a sentence strip and place on
the board) "I like to play with my ball." Good reading! Let's
try another: "I like to eat cake!" Good job!

5. Say: "Today we are going to read Tuck Dam. This story
is about two children who are trying to figure out something fun
to do for the day. They decide they want to go to Tuck Dam
because there is a lot to do there. They decide to take their
van, but it must be cleaned first. They packed the van and
headed to Tuck Dam. It was a bumpy ride and lost a hub cap that
a nice man picked up and brought to them. Then all of a sudden,
smoke started coming from the van. Do you think that they will
ever make it to Tuck Dam? Let's read and find out!"Give each student a
copy of Tuck Dam.
Say: I am going to divide you into partners. You are going to
take turns alternating reading a page of Tuck Dam. Make sure
you practice reading with expression because after reading the
whole book, you are going to perform reading the first chapter
called Go to Tuck Dam for your partner. We are going to help
each other out and tell each other where we need to improve by
using a checklist. When you and your partner are finished
reading the book, come get a buddy checklist from me and a
comprehension worksheet. Before we start reading and pairing up,
let's go over the checklist together (project it on the
projector, read over it, and explain it). Partner students and
allow them to read to each other. Express that they still need
to use their inside voices so that they are not a distraction to
other groups.

6. When students come to get the checklist and comprehension
worksheet say: Before you begin reading, I want each member of
the group to read the checklist. Then, one person of the group
needs to go first and read the first chapter only. While one
partner is reading, the other partner should be listening for
expression. After the partner who is reading is done, the other
partner need to answer the questions on the checklist. Each of
you will read and fill out a checklist for your partner. Once
both partners are finished reading and your checklists are
completely filled out, quietly start working on your
comprehension worksheet. One at a time I will come to your desk
and have you read a page to me.

7.
While students are waiting to read to the teacher or have
already read and waiting for the next activity, have students
complete the worksheet attached called Comprehension Questions.

8. Assessment: Take up the checklists and see
where students need further practice. This will give the teacher
an understanding of areas students excelled in and what areas
they still need to work on. When students read to the teacher it
would be beneficial if the teacher uses a classroom checklist
noting whether students did weak, fair, or excellent. The
worksheet entitled comprehension questions can also be assessed
to see whether students are struggling comprehending the story.